Aberdeenshire Voluntary Action News - May 2021

4 AVA | May 2021
Behind the scenes
at Magpie
Over the past year,
even in lockdown, work
went on at Magpie
reducing waste and
helping those in need in
Aberdeenshire
Lindsay Allardyce
AVA Communications &
Membership Manager
As for us all, the past year at Magpie was
very different to any other. Like most
other retailers, we couldn’t welcome
customers into our shop - and that’s what we
like to do – so what could we do? You may
not know, but Magpie isn’t just about selling
on second-hand furniture and helping the
environment – we also help people. For the
past 21 years, Magpie has been involved with
Aberdeenshire Council Housing department
to provide much needed goods to those
in need, making sure that individuals and
families in our communities have what they
need. We also work with the Aberdeenshire
South Foodbank to help deliver food to those
who need it.
Gifting to those in need
Our manager, Renee, and our fantastic
team of staff and volunteers worked tirelessly
behind the scenes to accommodate requests
for emergency household items, gifting over
40 items to families in crisis. That might be a
fridge, or a table to allow a family to sit and
eat together, or beds – whatever we can do
to help, we do it. During that time, we also
used our resources to deliver food parcels
throughout South Aberdeenshire to those who
needed them and while we wish this wasn’t
needed, we are happy to help get them to
where they’re needed. The rest of our time
was spent making sure the shop was going to
be safe and could accommodate customers
when we were allowed to open.
Re-opening!
We were delighted to be able re-open our
doors in July 2020, albeit on a smaller scale
to ensure the safety of our staff, volunteers,
and the public. With safety measures in place,
face masks on, sanitising stations and oneway
systems in place we opened our doors
to the public once again. We can’t overstate
how pleased we were to welcome customers
back to the shop – selling pre-loved, secondhand
goods – promoting sustainable living
and helping the environment along the
way. We were also just pleased to see folk!
Customers continued to donate goods for us
to sell on too – and that invaluable support
allows us to keep going. After another long
lockdown at the start of 2021, we are now
open and welcoming customers once again.
We’re providing a safe space to shop, taking
donations by appointment and enjoying that
little bit of normality once more.